Thursday, June 24, 2010

I make bread all the time and have a fascination and respect for yeast. I am not sure if I knew before reading this article but yeast is fungi– something else I have fascination and respect for–thinking about how yeast could potentially cure degenerative diseases... Olivia Judson, who I am a big fan of recently wrote an article about all of this called "Bubbles, Bread and Beer"...I really enjoyed reading it.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Just got some more photos today from a recent wedding...there have been a bunch ...tis the season.

I particularly loved this bouquet, much of it came from my own downtown garden...the popcorn hydrangea, mint, peonies and blueberries. My daughter was not thrilled that I cut from the blueberry plant for a bouquet before the berries had a chance to ripen! I will be sure to get her plenty from the farmers market this weekend.

Kate Headley's gorgeous photographs are below. You can find additional photographs from this wedding on her blog here. Kate shoots lots of her photographs with film, a rarity these days, at this wedding she used two of her favorite cameras the Twinlens Rolleiflex and the Contax 645--both use medium format film.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

I have not been blogging much the last several weeks...from spring through mid-summer all my worlds collide with flowers, gardens and food in full swing.

A glimpse of what I have been up to can be gleaned through the fabulous photos below taken by Jay Premack (to see more of his photos from the wedding click here).

I really enjoyed this one. The bride was a joy to get to know, great team for the wedding–immaculate planning by Aimee Dominick and the dramatic setting of the Newseum...

There were so many fun touches including the terrarium wishing table, grass for place cards, eclectic vases with bountiful spring flowers...More glimpses of weddings and musings about food to follow soon!

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

I have planted several container gardens this season. One was a large outdoor kitchen and fireplace area that was begging for the warmth of plantings. I collaborated with the family who lives there and we decided to use a variety of containers made of heavy glazed pottery, copper and terracotta. They wanted all the pots to be maintenance free and durable with year round plantings. We talked about different varieties of terracotta– the inexpensive terracotta readily available vs. Impruneta terracotta.

Impruneta terracotta comes from the Tuscan village of Impruneta which is unique because the clay from there has a high concentration of minerals including iron, calcium and aluminum. The result is that the pots are much stronger than other terracotta pots and can be very large since the weight of the clay does not compromise the structure of the pot. These pots are able to withstand negative 20 degree Fahrenheit temperatures without damage. All of the pots are made by hand and are available in a great variety of sizes and shapes as well as custom sizes. One of the many things I love about these pots is that since they are hand made each is a bit different. I have used Impruneta terracotta for projects before but this time I got them from a different company, Tuscan Imports. They were efficient and a pleasure to work with and their pots are priced less expensively than others. The beauty and scale of the many pieces that I got were impressive.

Sidra Forman

As chef, writer, speaker, florist, gardener and mom, we have a practice that integrates aesthetics, nutrition and health. We find pleasure inseparable from necessity. We live and work at a city studio with an urban garden that produces food and flowers for our work, family and friends. We cook with what we grow or use ingredients from local and 'best practice' sources. In this blog, we will discuss a collaboration that encounters food, flowers and gardens. We will share experiences, resources and recipes that make up an everyday practice.

Currently I am chef and food writer for Bob Greene’sBestlife Diet. I write and lecture about food, gardening and symbiosis. I have a flower and urban garden business where I use flowers, plants and seeds from 'best practice' sources (sidraforman.com). All the gardens have edible components. I run a Home Restaurant, sometimes Nomadic. We are working on The Farm at Walker Jones located at the Walker Jones Education Campus, a DC Public School.Rupperts Restaurant in Washington DC was my Home for many years and continues to inform my practice.